"The more we've gotten a few shutouts, the more confidence we have that we can grind out 0-0 draws if we have to or 1-0 wins. Confidence is huge in this sport."

Last Saturday's draw at Chicago was a perfect example of grinding out a result. Almost simultaneously in the 75th minute, the entire squad seemed to run out of gas, courtesy of the Midwest humidity. The players gutted out the final quarter hour and earned a valuable road point.

"After the game, the whole backline just dropped to their knees because they were exhausted," said Wingert.

While a lot of players are responsible for the turnaround, Olave's emergence is undoubtedly a big reason why. It took the first-year RSL player about a month to crack the starting lineup, but he's been a mainstay since. The team's overall record is 6-6-6 but 5-3-5 with Olave in the lineup.

"We have four very good center backs, and Jamison came in and he offered us something we didn't really have a lot of, and that's speed and covering ability," said Fraser. "I think the pairing of he and Nat has done very, very well so far. Their strengths complement each other."

Ian Joy's emergence has been critical as well, as he's returned from a six-game hiatus with three straight starts, all shutouts for Real Salt Lake.

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E-mail: jedward@desnews.com